How to write amazing proposals that land clients The difference between proposals that win and proposals that lose is striking . Over the years, I’ve reviewed hundreds of proposals, and I want you to understand exactly how to make your proposals win. In this PDF, you’ll learn how to write proposals so good that clients wouldn’t even think of looking elsewhere – even if your proposal is more expensive than your competition. You’ll also get to see a word-for-word proposal that has won a real, high-paying contract. B U T F I RST, LET’S TALK ABOUT THE THREE MOST COMMON MISTAKES PEOPLE MAKE . Mistake #1. They insult their prospect I SWEAR THIS HAPPENS . I’ve had people say: “Your social media photos are atrocious, let me help.” Then I looked at his profile photo of him wearing a fedora (a big no-no in my book, and for that matter, the world’s). Another said, “I’ve never bought from you, but here’s what you would need to get someone like me to buy.” Thanks, but I don’t take buying advice from non-buyers. One person said, “Nice muscle mass, but can I help you with the bags under your eyes?” His avatar was a picture of a tomato. That may have been the worst pitch I’d ever seen in my life. Maybe in their mind they’re only trying to help, but they’d be out of their mind if they think they can guilt-trip their way into a sale. Mistake #2. They tend to be too vague I’ve had a lot of people offer to help me with my “energy management.” What the hell are you selling? Is it a soft drink? Are you going to do my laundry? Most of these people are very eager to get on a call because they realize if they actually write down what they’re proposing, it would sound absurd. Pass. Mistake #3. They don’t deliver on their promise When my team and I were still in the early development stages of this program, my goal was to uplevel the look and feel of this product. That meant hiring outside agencies to work on our video, technology, and design. We solicited multiple bids — all of which were for big contracts. There was a guy I really liked, and I’ve worked with him before. We got on an introductory call, where he said he’d turn in his proposal five days later. And guess what happened? HE NEVER EVEN FOLLOWED UP...ON A $175,000 CONTRACT . I had the chance to ask him on Instagram why he didn’t even bother sending in a proposal. Here’s what he wrote back: He failed because he didn’t even show up. It was probably for the best. W H AT B R A ND OF TABLE SALT THAT IS? DO YOU KNOW? DO YOU EVEN CARE? EXACT LY. Most people have no idea because it’s just..table salt. It’s a commodity — something you can substitute with any other brand of table salt and it makes no difference. In your business, YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE A COMMODITY! But that’s how most proposals are. So many proposals use the same buzzwords; they make the same generic promises, like quality. This doesn’t just happen in freelancing. It happens in careers, too — people use the same generic resumes, same generic phrases, and shotgun it to 50 companies, even though it sounds like everyone else. So, most clients end up picking whatever is cheapest. Why do we do this? It’s just easier to do what everyone else is doing... even if it doesn’t work. Don’t worry, I won’t let you do this. Because now I’m going to show you what real winning proposals look like. Mistake # 4. They treat themselves like table salt The digital marketing proposal that landed a 5-figure deal A G O O D P ROPOSAL HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH FONTS, LENGTH, OR DESIGN. A GO O D P RO P O SA L IS ACTUALLY REALLY SIMPLE, BUT IT DOES THREE THINGS REALLY WELL : 1. Outlines the problems and shows how the customer’s problems will be solved 2. Shows how that will benefit them and their business when that happens 3. Above all, it focuses on the customer The reality is, a good proposal simply tells me why I should believe them and gives me the confidence that they are the best fit for solving my problem. That’s it. A winning proposal is like the difference between going into a $10 Supercuts, where I have to tell someone how I want my hair cut, and walking into a high-end salon, where the hair stylist looks at me and tells me how I should get my haircut to look my absolute best...and I completely trust them. In other words, it focuses on the customer: ME. Here’s an example of a 5-figure proposal for a digital marketer that I ended up approving. They start off the email showing that they’re familiar with my products. For extra context, this person asked for my permission to pitch me. I LOVE this because he wanted to be sure I’d be receptive to the proposal and read all the way through. Next, notice that he keeps the intro short and cuts right to the chase. Too many people spend PARAGRAPHS talking about nothing. I’m busy -- tell me how I benefit quickly! Notice how they anticipated and addressed my concerns: what they will do, if it will be any work for me, and how long they’re expected to complete the project (and see results). This shows they’ve worked with a lot of clients before. Notice that they pointed out issues on my blog (that I also knew about, and some that I DIDN’T), but they didn’t make me feel bad about it. Then they told me exactly what they’d do to fix and the outcome for what happens when these DO get fixed W H AT A R E OUR OVERALL TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS? • First of all, did you notice the level of detail this person went into? You could tell the painstaking lengths this person had gone to in their research on me and my business. • Their proposal outlined all the problems that I already knew about in my business — and some I didn’t even realize! • Then they painted a clear picture of what would happen and how I would benefit if I hired them. I love it when people do the hard work for me. So many times, proposals just list out generic things the person will do — for anyone and everyone. At the end of the day, I’m the customer and I want to feel special! I want to be sure my problems have been fully acknowledged and understood and will be solved. This proposal addressed those things, and in the end, this person landed a 5-figure deal — and I was more than happy to pay. How to write your own winning proposal I J U ST S H OWED YOU A 5-FIGURE PROPOSAL AND WHY IT WAS A NO-BRAINER TO H I R E T H E M . S O, WHAT EXACTLY WAS TH E MAGIC BEHIND THIS PROPOSAL? There’s a concept I teach called The Briefcase Technique. It’s a technique that involves doing the work ahead of time to create a step-by-step proposal that spans several pages and that you just pull out of your briefcase during the interview (mainly for the theatrics). This means that when you’re creating your own winning proposal, you need to think about how to solve the customer’s problem in great detail. And to do that, you need to really study the customer and their business. And yes — that can be a lot of work. But this is truly the difference between a freelancer who’s like table salt and freelancer who is a Top Performer. Average person: “Well, I just fired off my generic proposal and rates and hope for the best.” Vs Top Performer: “I’ll spend 5 or more hours researching this client and their business because I know that this time upfront is worth it.” W H O WO U LD YOU RATHER BE? Even if it takes longer to prepare your proposal, it will pay off in the long run. This means people who spend 2x the time can get 5x the results — which is exactly what disproportionate results are all about. Yes, you will have to work harder, but you will also get the first pick of top-quality clients, while other people fight over the scraps. What we’re doing is sidestepping the losing game that others fall into playing. They submit their me-too proposals down the Black Hole of Doom, hoping and praying for the best. And meanwhile, they wonder why they never land the clients they want. You are going to nail exactly where you should be different, so you can focus your energy there while keeping the less important things constant. Remember, clients want to pay you. More importantly, they want their problems solved. And when you can show that you can do that in your proposal, they WILL pay — whatever your price — because it will become a mere triviality. When you do this, most interviewers are salivating over the fact that you anticipated all of their problems and have solutions to them. They might even give you the job on the spot! They know they can get all these things done, and the person to do these things would be you . That’s when you know that you’ve got them. You can see that in action specifically here: READY TO DOUBLE YOUR REVENUE IN YOUR BUSINESS? We have an advanced course called Ramit’s 6 Figure Consulting System . It teaches the exact strategies, tactics, mindsets, systems and hard-won lessons Ramit has accumulated about breaking the 6-figure barrier. We include real proposals and dive deep into topics like maximizing marketing, optimizing revenue models, systems and automation, hiring, and the deep psychology of high-level consultants. Learn more here